NPR News: 03-31-2026 9PM EDT

0:00Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. Defense Secretary Pete Hagseth made an undisclosed trip to the Middle East to visit U.S. troops. He discussed his visit during a news conference at the Pentagon. NPR's Quill Lawrence reports Hagseth claims regime change has been achieved in Iran. Hagseth visited troops over the weekend. He said morale was high and the U.S. is rapidly building bunkers to protect troops and aircraft from Iranian strikes. Hagseth echoed President Trump's claim that Iran's new leadership is now more moderate. Many Iran experts believe it's more hard line. Hagseth said opening the strait of her moves and rocketing worldwide oil prices are not America's problem. Countries around the world who ought to be prepared to step up on this critical waterway as well. It's not just the United States Navy. He said the Trump administration prefers a negotiated settlement but would not rule out using ground troops. Quill Lawrence and PR News. The White House says President Trump will deliver a public address at 9 o'clock Eastern tomorrow night to discuss the war.

1:01Three fired FBI agents are suing to get their jobs back. The former agents say they were targeted for investigating President Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. NPR's Ryan Lucas reports. The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Washington, D.C. by three former FBI agents. Michelle Ball, Jamie Garman and Blair Tolman, who are bureau veterans with years of experience. They were fired last year as part of what the lawsuit calls a retribution campaign against FBI employees who worked on Trump investigations. The suit is the latest to be filed by fired FBI agents, but this one could have a broader impact because it is seeking to represent a proposed class of at least 50 FBI employees who have been fired under the Trump administration for what the lawsuit says are similarly improper reasons. Ryan Lucas and PR News, Washington. Wall Street rallied today as investors hoped for an end to the war in Iran and the resulting energy crisis. As NPR's Maria Aspen reports, the Dow surged two and a half percent, the S&P 500 rose nearly 3 percent, and the Nasdaq soared more than three and three quarters of a percent.

2:05It was Wall Street's best day since last May, and it ended March on an unexpected high note for investors. They've spent the month worried about how badly the war and its shock to oil prices will damage the wider economy. Regular gas now costs on average more than $4 per gallon, and everything else could soon be more expensive too. Tech investors have been particularly rattled, and they ended the month with a slight reprieve as shares of meta, alphabet, and other big tech companies soared. But even after the one-day rally, US stocks ended the month in the red. The Dow broke a 10-month winning streak, and the benchmark S&P 500 had its worst month since 2022. Maria Aspen and PR News. The average price for a regular gallon of gas or past $4 today, this is NPR News. Sexual violence and rape have defined Sudan's nearly three-year civil war doctors without borders say the crimes are perpetuated both in conflict and everyday life as NPR's Emmanuel Akinwoto reports.

3:12The report by MSF says the war is being fought on the backs and bodies of women and girls, many of whom have suffered sexual violence during the war between the Sudanese Army and the paramilitary rapid support forces. Researchers spoke with more than 3,000 survivors of sexual violence who sought treatment at MSF facilities in the Western region of Dow 4. Many women said they were abused by fighters while trying to flee conflict areas. Others said they were attacked in communities where fighting had passed while performing everyday activities like farming and fetching water. According to the report, the RSF are responsible for most of the abuse. The war in Sudan has created the largest humanitarian crisis in the world. Emmanuel Akinwoto and PR News. Leibos. The Trump administration is exempting oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico from the Endangered Species Act. The exemption was requested by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who says lawsuits from environmental groups are threatening energy production. Critics say the move could doom Gulf populations of endangered rice's whales.

4:16A veteran South African politician is campaigning for mayor of Johannesburg by snorkeling in a sinkhole. Helen Zilla posted video of herself paddling through the water with a wetsuit. She says a burst water pipe has sat unfixed for about three years and the stunt highlights years of city mismanagement. Johannesburg's current mayor says the hole has now been fixed. This is NPR News. Listen to this podcast sponsor free on Amazon Music with a prime membership or any podcast app by subscribing to NPR News Now Plus at plus.npr.org. That's plus.npr.org.